Unnerved and stretched thin. That’s a good description of how my extended family is feeling heading into the new year. Nearly two years of COVID lockdowns, mandates, job disruptions, and worries have left them exhausted.
Rising prices – with no end in sight – means they’re counting every nickel. A senior cut back the traditional holiday meal from turkey and ham, to turkey only. If you’re tempted to chuckle or think that’s no big deal, think again. Those few dollars really mean something to this person’s monthly budget.
For those in my family who had hope before COVID and Biden, they’re now questioning if they can ever dig out and move up – or if they’re stuck in an ugly ‘new normal.’ They remember a roaring economy. They want Trump back, and they don’t care about mean tweets.
For the most successful in my family, it’s the first time in decades that they’re thinking twice before buying or vacationing or donating to charity. No longer do they take financial stability for granted. No longer are they certain about retirement. No longer are they confident that their kids will be better off than they are.
As one family member commented, “I don’t recognize my country, or my life.”
When I saw Tuesday’s CNBC story, it hit me that my family is a microcosm of America. The story’s headline says it all. It’s disturbing to realize that the candidate who sold himself as the stable, experienced guy who would end the pandemic and return us to prosperity has flunked the test.
The rejection of Mr. Biden’s policies is acute when it comes to so-called ‘kitchen table’ issues — the things my family is worried about. In other words, the things we see and feel every single day. Note several key points in the data chart below, which summarizes the Change Research data.
First, Independents have had it with the president. They give him a “D” grade. Translation: he’s lost the people who were critical to his election, the people who go back and forth between the political parties based on how a president’s decisions impact them.
Second, Mr. Biden’s fellow Democrats aren’t sold on his performance, either. They give him just as many “C” grades as they give him “Bs.” Translation: he’s teetering with his base. That could spell electoral disaster in the midterms. Why would the faithful turn out when they’re not sold on their president?
Third, Republicans see the Biden administration as a disaster, giving him nearly all “F” grades, with one “D” thrown in as a nod to the rising stock market. No surprise here. His views simply aren’t theirs.
While America is searching for a way to survive the failed first-year policies of the Biden administration, the president told ABC’s David Muir that he wants another term. Eight years of the Biden economy. Imagine it as you watch the president talk about it.
It’s sobering.
